Automatic matching and doubling machine



Aug. 13, 1929. KQ H 1,724,715

AUTOMATIC MATCHING AND DOUBLING' MAGRTN-E Filed June 17, 1926 3 Sheets-Sheet .1

Aug. 13, 1929. KOCH 1,724,715

AUTOMATIC MATCHING AND DOUBLING MACHINE Filed June 17, 1926 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR L v J Emzlfl oclz ATTORN Y Aug. 13,1929.

E. KOCH AUTOMATIC MATCHING AND DOUBLING MACHINE Filed June 17, 1926 5 Sheets-Sheet oooooooouoauooooo 0 INVENTOR E mi Z J/oofi A ITORNEY Patented Aug. 13, 1929 UNITED STATES PATENT OFF-ICE,

EMIL KOCH, F MULHEIM-RUHR, GERMANY, ASS-IGNOR TO DEUTSCH-LUXEK- BUBGISCHE BERGWEBKS- 'UND HEUTTEN-AKTIENGFSEDLSCHAFT, 02E DOBTM'U'NTD, GERMANY, A GERMAN STOCK :CO'MECPAN Y.

AUTOMATIC MATCHING- AND DOUBLING MACHINE.

Application .flled June 17,

The invention relates to machines for matching and doubling sheet metal and sheet metal packets or piles. In rolling thin sheet metal plates it is well known that the same may be obtained only by allowing the sheets to pass between the rolls doubled and superimposed in several layers.

Such doubling of the thin metal plates is generally accomplished in the following manner: A workman seizes with suitable tongs one end of the ,hot sheet lying on the floor of the mill, and then pulls it over the sheet until the two ends of the metal match. The fold is first operated on by the feet and then pressed together in a suitable device, whereupon the .thus doubled sheet is trimmed by shears. This mode of matching and doubling entails great skill on the part of a workman and who is likely, also, .to suffer considerably from the intense heat radiated from the hot sheets with which he is working. Furthermore, the operations require great physical effort on his part; and he is, also, subjected to considerable danger as it 2 frequently happens that the particularly resilient sheet slips out of the tongs and injures the legs of the operator, or he himself slips and falls on a hot sheet. It is especially difiicult, moreover, for the operator to .ex-

actly halve a sheet; and as he rarely succeeds in so doing, a considerable waste almost always results.

It has been proposed to effect these matching and doublingoperations by means of a machine; and machines of this-character are known, but have certain disadvantages which it is the object of the present invention to overcome. A satisfactory machine of this character must be ofcomparatively simple and rugged construction, and must- .not

involve too severe conditions for :its operation, which should be entirely automatic and accomplish the work with the least possible waste in the subsequent shearing. of the doubled material.

The novel machine in itsautomatic operation contemplates a straighteningout of the sheet while on the floor of the mill within the said machine; the forcing of the sheet into a folding pocket; the pressing together or doubling of the folded sheet-along't'he-line of fold; and the liftingof the sheet out of 1926. Serial No. 116,643.

the pocket and turning over of said sheet.

This is attained in the novel machine ,as hereinafter more fully described and 'by .the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which i Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the novel matching and doubling machine.

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section thru the machine taken on the line 22, Fig.1 of the drawings, and looking in the direction .of the arrows.

Fig. 3 is a transverse vertical section, taken on the line 3-3, Fig. 2 and looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary elevation illustrating the arrangement for starting the machine and for the automatic reversing mechanism.

Referring to the drawings, 1O designates the mill floor beneath which is a pit 11 to accommodate a portion of the mechanism, more especially the folding pocket 12 with doubling or reciprocable pressure member 13 for the pressing together or doubling of the folded sheet along its fold line; also, the driving mechanism therefor and including an electric motor 14. Above the floor extends a superstructure or frame 15 of structural steel and comprising vertically disposed guide members or standardsfor-a vertically reciprocable carriage for a folding beam 16 which is carried and reciprocated by a pair of endless chains, as the sprocket chains 17. The latter are mounted over respective pairs of sprocket wheels .18 and 19carried by the standards of the frame 15 and which drive the respective chains in the desired directions. Motion for thispurpose is transmitted thereto from the motor 14 thru intermediate mechanism including the motor pinion 20 and spur gear 21 meshing therewith, the latter driving a horizontally disposed shaft 22 upon which are loose- .ly mounted two bevel gears 23. These-gears mesh with a further bevel gear 24 located intermediate said gear and .rlgidly mounted upon a shaft 25 located in the lower portion 0 the pit 11 in suitable bearings of the standards ofthe frame '15, which shaftdrives a counter shaft25' carrying also the lower and driving sprockets 18 and'19 for the chains 17 A clutch member 26 is mountefi to rotate with the shaft 22 and is adapted to clutch eithersof the bevel gears 23 thereto thru the actuation of a control lever 27, extending above the floor level for convenient manipulation, and operating in manner well understood. Thus, as the lever is shifted to one Side or the other of its neutral position, indicated in Fig. 4 of the drawings, the direction of movement of the chains 17 will be determined. Said chains 17 may be provided with suitable counterweights 28 for weight compensation.

As stated, the chains carry the folding beam 16 and are adapted to move the same into the folding pocket 12 and then remove it therefrom, the degree of insertion being determined by the travel of the chains and which automatically effect a reversal of said travel thru a system of levers and links which control also the extent of upward or return movement of the beam. For example, said system is caused to actuate the clutch member 26 thru its attached control lever 27 and to this end the system comprises duplicate setsone on each side of the standards 15embodying an upper bellcrank 30 with contact roller 31 at its inner free end with a similar and lower crank 32 with roller 33, said roller extending into the path of movement of the beam member and being adapted for engagement therewith to shift links 34 and 35'connecting the respective pairs of cranks. Connected with the lowermost cranks, or rather their rockshaft 36, is a further arm or crank 37 which is connected with a link 39 having its other end attached to the control lever 27 for rocking the same in accordance with the actuation of the upper or lower cranks of the pair of cranks. In the former event, the

' control lever will be drawn thereby to the neutral position indicated in Fig. 4 to arrest the driving movement of the sprocket chains; whereas when the lower cranks are actuated, the control lever 27 will be drawn over backwardly to the position indicated in dotted lines for reversing the beam lowering move ment thru proper connection of the clutch 26. To start the mechanism, control lever 27 is manually pulled forwardly to throw the clutch into the other driving train.

Positioning arms 40, for locating the metal sheet, as against suitable angular stop members 41 secured to the floor 10, are also designed to be actuated by the traveling chains for the purpose of accurately positioning the metal sheet at right angles to the folding beam and prior to contact of the same therewith. To this end, the pair of arms 40 are pivoted at the bottom of the. pit and are drawn by springs 42 in a direction away from the stops 41, being intended to be post tively moved in the opposite direction in the following manner. An adjustable detent mime member 43 carried by the beam 16 at one side of the standards is designed to engage the free end of a bell-crank 44 secured to a rock shaft 45, which in turn thru arms 46 secured thereto is connected by links 47 with the arms 40. Thus as engagement of detent 43 with the bell-crank takes place, the arms 40 will be positively drawn in the direction of the stops 41, the timing being such that this operation occurs just prior to and which supports an ejector member or bar 50 for removing the folded and doubled sheet from the pocket 12. This action does not occur, however, until the beam has been withdrawn and after having folded and brought the sheet into the pocket substantially to the center of the reciprocable pressure member 13 and whereby the said folded sheet has been doubled. 'Movement of the pressure or doubling member is obtained from the shaft 25 thru cams 51 rotatable therewith and adapted to engage rollers 52 at the corresponding ends of arms 53 of levers whose other arms are connected with said pressure member and which is urged normally in a direction away from the folding pocket by a counter-weight 54 attached thereto.

After the doubling operation has thus been accomplished, the folded and doubled sheet is to be ejected from the pocket 12, the same being effected by the ejector member 50 which for this purpose is engaged at this stage of the operations by followers 55 carriedby the sprocket chains. Shortly before arriving at the floor level, motion of the ejector member, and in fact. motion of the chains also, is arrested; and the folded and doubled sheet is then thrown down by swing ing arms 56 which normally lie below the floor level, but which are elevated to throw down a sheet by means of a spring drawn link 57 attached to an arm 58 extending from the rock shaft 59 carrying said arms. The other end of the link is connected to a lever 60 having a roller 61 at its free end and which roller is adapted to engage the beam member as it ascends, a spring 62 attached to the link and floor serving to restore the arms 56 to their position below the floor after the roller clears.

The operation of the machine to fold and double sheet metal or sheet metal piles is substantially as follows- The metal sheet is placed on the floor 10 of the mill between the standards 15 so that the middle of the sheet will lie substantially above the middle of the folding pocket 12 and which may be accomplished conve1riently by reference to a suitable scale (not shown) and as will be well understood. The control lever 27 is then drawn forwardly to clutch in the gear train for driving the chains 17 in a direction to lower the folding beam 16. However, shortly before the latter touches the sheet metal, the positioning arms are actuated by the detent 43 and intermediate mechanism to move the sheet metal against the stops or bottom members 41 to locate the same accurately at right angles to the folding beam. As the latter approximates the sheet metal, the positioning arms 40 are returned to their original position to release the same metal which, upon further downward movement of the folding beam,

l is drawn into the folding pocket 12 substantially to the center of the pressure member 13. Thereupon, the clutch or coupling member is shifted, by the action of the beam member with the lower rollers 33 and intermediate mechanism, to cause the beam to ascend. After the beam has left the folding pocket- 12, the pressure member 13 is moved into said pocket thru the action of the cams 51 and intermediate mechanism to press same together along the folding line, whereupon counter-weight 54 returns the pressure member to its normal position and permits the folded and doubled sheet metal to be lifted out of the pocket. This is effected by means of the ejector member which is picked up by the followers 55 in the continued upward motion of the chains. Thereupon, the material is thrown down by the swinging arms 56 as the latter are elevated by engagement of the beam member with the roller 61, permitting an operator to readily seize the same with tongs. Vhereupon, it may be cut with suitable shears (not shown) which may be provided on the doubling apparatus itself and operated by the motor thereof, if desired. The operation is thus entirely automatic and is rapidly performed, requiring only a few seconds. The machine, moreover, is immediately ready to receive a further sheet, and the operations may be performed by unskilled workmen, which has not been the case heretofore with apparatus of this character.

I claim 1. In an automatic matching and dou bling machine: driving means; an endless carrier; means to impart reciprocatory motion thereto from the driving means; a pressure member affording a pocket; and a folding beam reciprocated by the endless carrier in'one plane at right angles to the plane of travel of said endless carrier and adapted 3. In an automatic matching and doubling machine: driving means; an endless carrier; means to impart reciprocatory motion thereto from the driving means; a pressure member affording a pocket; a folding beam reciprocated by the said carrier and adapted to engage a sheet to be folded and draw the same into said pocket to fold it therein; and means actuated by the motion of said carrier to automatically limit the extent of reciprocation of said folding beam.

at. In an automatic matching and doubling machine: driving means, an endless carrier; means to impart reciprocatory motion thereto from the driving means; a folding beam reciprocated by the said carrier; a lever movable to different positions for starting, reversing and arresting the movement of the beam; and means actuated by the motion of said carrier to automatically position said lever.

5. In an automatic matching and doubling machine: driving means, an endless carrier; means to impart reciprocatory motion thereto from the driving means; a folding beam reciprocated by. the said carrier; a lever movable to different positions for starting, reversing and arresting the movement of the beam, said lever being manually operable for starting the movement of the said beam; and means actuated by the motion of said carrier to move said lever in position for reversing and in position for arresting movement of the beam.

6. In an automatic matching and doubling machine: driving means; an endless carrier; means to impart reciprocatory motion thereto from the driving means; a folding beam reciprocated by the said carrier; a lever movable to different positions for starting, reversing and arresting the movement of the beam; means actuated by the motion of said carrier to automatically position said lever; and a clutch mechanism cont-rolled by said lever and adapted thereby to connect the endless carrier to the driving means.

7 In an automatic matching and donbling machine: driving means; an endless carrier; means to impart reciprocatory motion thereto from the driving means; a folding beam reciprocated by the said carrier;

automatic means to limit the extent of reciprocation of said folding beam; a reciprocable pressing member; and intermediate mechanism operated from the driving means to move same for doubling a folded sheet.

8. In an automatic matching and doubling machine: driving means; an endless carrier; means to impart reciprocatory motion thereto from the driving means; a folding beam reciprocated by the said carrier; automatic means to limit the extent of reciprocation of said folding beam; a reciprocable pressing member; intermediate mechanism operated from the driving means to move same for doubling a folded sheet; means for ejecting the doubled sheet and elevated by the carrier; and weighted means to return the ejecting means to its normal position.

9. In an automatic matching and doubling machine: driving means; an endless carrier; means to impart reciprooatory motion thereto from the driving means; a folding beam reciprocated by the said carrier;

automatic means to limit the extent of reciprocation of said .folding beam; a detent member moving with the carrier; means for positioning a sheet to be folded with respect to the folding beam; and intermediate mechanism adapted to be engaged by the said detent to actuate the positioning means.

10. In an automatic matching and doubling machine: driving means; an endless carrier; means to impart reciprocatory motion thereto from the driving means; a folding beam reciprocated by the said carrier; automatic means to limit the extent of reciprocation of said folding beam; a reciprocable pressing member; intermediate mechanism operated from the driving means to move same for doubling a folded sheet; means for ejecting the doubled sheet and elevated by the carrier; weighted means to return the ejecting means to its normal position; and means to throw down an ejected, folded and doubled sheet.

In testimony whereof I affix'my signature.

EMlL KOCH. 

